Transforming something or re-purposing an object into a piece of art fills me with a sense of accomplishment and expresses my creativity. By recycling an item and creating a piece of art, I feel I am saving a forgotten treasure to be rediscovered in years to come

Brenda Armstrong resides in Highland County just outside of Leesburg, Ohio, on a farm where she enjoys life in the country with her husband Mark, and working in her studio. In her studio, Brenda works with a variety of media to fashion new art from materials that have acquired character through the passage of time. Brenda has designed and created hand-hooked rugs for over 35 years. This is an art that she was taught by her mother, which today she enjoys as a hobby. She feels this was the start of her creative talents. Her interest in making hand-sewn bandboxes came as a result of her love for vintage clothing. She and a friend began the business “Faded Memories” over 25 years ago, with Brenda being on her own for the past 15 years. Bandboxes, popular in the early 1800’s were used as suitcases, hatboxes, collar and trinket boxes, and were made of pasteboard, leather, and wood. “Faded Memories” boxes are made of cardboard, hand-cut and hand-sewn in the traditional way. They are covered with vintage wallpapers and lined with old, damaged periodicals. A bandbox by “Faded Memories” is a piece of the past, preserved for the future. Brenda designs unique jewelry by taking scraps of her wallpapers, encasing them under beveled glass, and making beautiful brooches and necklaces. She also repurposes vintage buttons, jewelry, and other items creating new and exciting wearable art. Teddy bears made by “Faded Memories” are fully jointed, and many are made by recycling old coats, wool, and fur. Some are dressed in vintage clothing, and each bear has a unique personality. Brenda is a self-taught artist. She is a member of the Appalachian Artisan Guild and The Ohio Designer Craftsmen. She has been featured in magazines and other articles. She has received awards for her displays and demonstrations, and promotes traditional arts through doing programs for clubs, groups, and libraries. She has been active in promoting the arts through workshops and teaching classes for adults and children.

Brenda’s work may be seen and purchased at Artisan shows or at her studio. Open by appointment.

Elaine is self-taught and enjoys creating art in just about any medium, any genre'. She's painted just about everything - including portraits, flowers, still life, classic aircraft, contemporary and landscapes. In 2008, Elaine donated one of her aircraft paintings to a show sponsored by the Pentagon, and is now a member of the U.S. Air Force Art Program (AFAPO). In 2010, she donated 2 more pieces of art to the AFAPO, and in 2013, donated 3 more. The program now has a collection of over 10,000 pieces of artwork since 1947 which have been donated by artists all over the country to record the history of the USAF. Elaine is very honored to be in the company of such great artists. Several of her paintings are on loan to the USAF and are presently hanging in the HQ AF Materiel Command Building at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Fairborn, OH. Many of her paintings have been created with mixed media, on an acrylic base, using various Golden brand molding pastes and pumice gels to give texture. Others have an underlying thick layer primed with Gesso. Elaine enjoys painting flowers so they appear larger than life, and the viewer can see the dynamic beauty in nature.In addition to acrylics, she enjoy pastels, watercolor, colored pencil and graphite, and has done several commission pieces. A detailed 4-page demonstration on how to paint a Chocolate Labrador Retriever puppy using acrylic paints is included in North Light Publishing’s book, Painter’s Quick Reference: Cats & Dogs. Elaine was represented by Studio 14 Fine Arts Gallery, (Tipp City, OH) and is a member of the Appalachian Artisans Guild.

I am Tracy Burske and for over 30 years I have been an Interior Designer. I started my craft 6 years ago as a result noticing in my workroom that several bolt ends of fabric from completed projects would be thrown away. I thought that would be a terrible waste, so I developed several bag styles made out of those fabric ends. I also have an endless supply of discontinued fabric samples that turn over by the manufacturers seasonally. I design and hand sew all my bags. I match the fabrics, linings, and trims to create a one-of-a-kind work of art. I make several styles of bags from tote bags, book bags, gift bags, lunch bags, wine bags, Bible bags, larger weekender bags and my most popular styles wheelchair and walker bags. I now have a design that is perfect for I Pads, Tablets, Nooks and Kindles. The bags are made from high quality designer fabrics, many with accent trims and tassels. I look at it as an earth friendly craft as I am saving these fabrics from going to the landfill and my bags are useful and reusable. Include in the email colors, patterns and the bag style you desire. We will then locate in our workroom suitable samples of fabrics that we will scan and send back in an email for you to make a final selection. We accept checks on local banks along with Visa, MasterCard, Discover, & PayPal.

A career in the hardwood lumber and millwork industries and a lifelong love of working with wood were the impetus behind the birth of the Spiritwood Studio and his woodwork efforts. Through the years, he's been fascinated with the old-hand woodworking techniques and the many antique tools for working wood no longer seen today. He has resisted using labor-saving power tools whenever possible in favor of hand working the wood. "There is a real connection to the piece you are working on when you continually handle it through the process of creating it." Bill works primarily in painted pieces from pine and poplar.

A resident of Adams County, he sometimes uses wood from his property for some of his rustic pieces. Reproduction 18th and 19th century dowry chests have been Bill’s major woodwork endeavor. "I hand-cut and fit the dovetailed corners just as they did over 100 years ago. The task today could be vastly accelerated with dovetail jigs and routers, but the dovetails would be uniformly monotonous and not produce as strong a joint. Hand-cutting the dovetail corners offers strength, character and pride in a piece. The enjoyment of working with wood for the sheer pleasure far offsets the economic rewards. I enjoy a challenge and can make custom pieces for customers. I will make custom pieces from a photograph or if you just have an idea, I will sketch it for you."

Products from Spiritwood Studio are available by contacting Bill at home (above address).

The desire to be creative has been present all my life. By the age of 10 I was sewing doll clothes on a treadle machine and winning honors in 4-H. I was hooked! I took Home Economics in high school and college to increase my sewing knowledge. My creative talents were unleashed when I majored in Art at Cumberland College. Always creative, my skills soared during my teaching years while designing activities for my students. After I became a mother of four I found myself designing crafts, creating home items, and clothing for my family and friends. Now that I am a grandmother and retired from teaching, I have devoted myself to being a full time artisan in the sewing field. I now look forward to sharing my talents with my customers by helping them create their warm home with my creations as I did for my family!

Sturdy, practical, long-lasting and elegant creations for the home, crafted in wood.

4651 Bennington Road

Hillsboro, OH 45133

937-393-2747

For many years, Hal and Diana Harvey have designed and made practical (or just fun) wood and fabric items for themselves and their family, and upon semi-retirement from teaching, Rack-It was born. From large laundry racks, herb racks, tables and chairs to simple toys and wooden kitchen utensils, Rack-It makes over four dozen sturdy, practical, long-lasting and elegant creations using a combination of hand and power tools.

Our demonstration is a very hands-on approach to imparting an appreciation of the ingenuity and expertise of Appalachian craftsmen of the past who used simple tools and readily available raw materials to make the necessities.

We challenge people to open our reproduction of a wood lock on a miniature smokehouse, handing them the large wooden key, and showing the ingenious inner workings through the window at the back of the door.

We invite children and adults to play with simple Appalachian wood and fabric toys: The dancer and whooies (which Hal carves at the booth), tops with launchers, climbing bears, various puzzles, and dolls.

As professional educators, we cannot resist the opportunity to teach why these things were made, how they were made, why they were made of certain materials, and how they worked.

Jack is a self-taught artist-blacksmith dedicated to promoting the ancient art of blacksmithing. Jack’s specialty is hand-hammer, forged, and manipulated hot steel. He gravitates toward Colonial-style wrought iron. He designs his own work that includes candle holders, fireplace accessories, tools and axes. In addition to the Appalachian Artisans Guild, Jack is a member of the Southern Ohio Forge and Anvil and The Artist Blacksmith Association of Northern America.

I have a small flock of Columbia/Rambouillet sheep and find various ways to use the wool they produce. I learned to spin yarn in the late 1980’s, which led to my learning to knit and felt, two very different ways to use wool. Having my own sheep gives me the satisfaction of experiencing the entire process, from seeing lambs being born, to wearing a wool sweater I created from their fiber. I try to keep the wool pipeline flowing at all times. Once shearing is over there is sorting, washing, carding and spinning to be done, followed by dying, knitting, and/or felting. On any given day, several of these might activities might come into play. I enjoy sharing my craft through workshops and festivals. I value the traditions it represents. These were skills our ancestors needed in order to survive as our country was being formed, and it’s important that they not be lost.

I was born and raised in Cincinnati, OH by two Art Institute of Chicago grads, so becoming an artist was a natural result. I have been working with clay since the age of 12. After studying painting at Washington University, and illustration at the University of Kansas, I returned to Cincinnati and to clay, and have been potting ever since.

I’ve been making and selling pottery for over 35 years. I was also a red ware decorator at the Earthen Vessel in Cincinnati and became their shop manager. After a 14-year detour to New Mexico, I returned to southwest Ohio and eventually joined the Appalachian Artisans Guild.

I enjoy using a very traditional art form and turning it into something that makes people smile. I combined two loves, animals and cartooning, and now create functional stoneware pottery decorated with whimsical animal caricatures: boxes and mugs.